After being moved to tears by the sworn enemy's pheromones - Chapter 58

Before Song Yizhi could finish speaking, Gu Yu had already stepped forward, grabbing Song Yizhi by the collar, his raised fist trembling from the force of his grip.

Snow and wind filled the air. Gu Yu recalled the scene a few hours earlier when Shen Jin, trembling all over, had clutched at him. His face burned with anger, but before his fist could land, there was a knock at the door.

“Tao Yan?” Shen Jin hadn’t noticed Gu Yu when he entered and asked, “Why did you call me here?”

Gu Yu panicked as their eyes met, and Shen Jin immediately looked hurt and turned to leave.

Gu Yu quickly pulled him back, checking if he was properly dressed. “It’s cold outside, why did you come out?”

Shen Jin took two steps back, limping slightly, and sullenly replied, “Don’t touch me. We’re not that close.”

Jiang Lan cast a mocking glance. “Say a few more mean words, I like listening to them.”

Gu Yu didn’t have time to respond; he simply pulled Shen Jin inside as if carrying a piece of luggage, shut the door, and whispered, “Don’t stand in the cold.”

Shen Jin averted his gaze and noticed Song Yizhi’s red, teary eyes, feeling puzzled. “What’s wrong, Yizhi?”

But the other didn’t answer, just clenched his fists and avoided his gaze.

Tao Yan sighed lightly and explained to Shen Jin, “I didn’t intend to disturb your rest, but I think this is something you should be present for.”

Gu Yu sat Shen Jin down beside him and listened as Tao Yan explained the situation.

At first, Shen Jin’s expression was only one of simple confusion, but soon, it became mixed with complex surprise and disbelief.

He started coughing, his mind reeling as if nails were being driven into it one by one. Du Jun’s face flashed before his eyes, and a wave of nausea rose in his throat, causing him to shrink closer to Gu Yu’s embrace.

Gu Yu comforted him gently, his hand brushing over Shen Jin’s spine through the thick fabric, “It’s okay, Senior… I’m here.”

As he spoke, Gu Yu looked up, his brows slightly furrowed, and slowly shook his head at Tao Yan.

The room was filled only with the sound of Song Yizhi’s low sobs. Realizing no one would comfort him, he stopped crying in frustration and moved towards the door. “…I-I’ll go back now.”

The others glanced up but didn’t expect that the one to stop Song Yizhi would be Shen Jin.

The lights of the guesthouse glowed warmly in the cold night, like a small, cozy planet. Suddenly, Shen Jin got up and blocked Song Yizhi’s path, saying to the others, “You guys go out first. I need to talk to Yizhi alone.”

His voice was cold, with none of the earlier warmth.

Jiang Lan and Tao Yan exchanged glances, agreeing to let them talk alone, but Gu Yu, not feeling reassured, stayed rooted in place, clenching his fists.

“I’m not crippled.” Shen Jin still seemed hurt as he looked away from Gu Yu, pushing him gently. “It’s just a minor injury; I can still take on ten guys by myself, and besides, you’ll all be right outside.”

Though Gu Yu’s hands trembled with reluctance, Jiang Lan and Tao Yan eventually persuaded him, leading him out of the room.

The small door closed, shutting out the wind and snow. Shen Jin turned around and took a cigarette from the pack Jiang Lan had left behind, lighting his first cigarette of the year.

Song Yizhi, not accustomed to the harsh smell of tobacco, began to cough weakly. “Brother Shen Jin, I…”

“Were you faking it?” Shen Jin looked at him through a thin layer of smoke. “When I walked in just now, weren’t you acting like your whole family had died?”

“…” Song Yizhi was momentarily stunned, seemingly not expecting Shen Jin, who had always been kind to him, to speak like this.

“Surprised?” Shen Jin exhaled a puff of smoke and continued, “It’s a shame you don’t play games, otherwise you’d know that cursing someone’s whole family is actually considered civilized behavior among jungle players.”

The light from the cigarette glowed with his every breath, like a wildfire burning on a moonlit wasteland.

“I never liked to think badly of you before; I just assumed you were a spoiled kid,” Shen Jin said. “This world is always full of prejudice against omegas. Gentle and cute ones like you are labeled as manipulative, and tough ones like me are assumed to be alphas—I always thought these prejudices were meaningless. What about you?”

Song Yizhi’s gaze trembled slightly, only daring to look at Shen Jin’s shoulder.

Seeing this, Shen Jin unceremoniously reached out and grabbed his face, forcing him to look up and meet his cold, sharp eyes. “From the moment you first called Gu Yu ‘brother,’ I could have easily called you a shameless slut and told you to get lost. Why do you think I didn’t?”

Song Yizhi stood frozen, his eyes turning red, but he said nothing.

Shen Jin already had his answer in mind. He released Song Yizhi’s face with such force that it was akin to a slap.

The long-forgotten smell of tobacco made him cough again, but he still held the cigarette tightly and continued, “That kind of drug is something alphas specifically buy to deal with ‘disobedient’ omegas. They take pride in it, sharing their experiences in some dark corners, and this drug has appeared in numerous cases of omega assaults. How can you expect me to believe that you, who deliberately got hold of such a drug, are innocent?”

Shen Jin couldn’t bear to recall his futile struggle in the cold wind. When Du Jun pressed down on him, he even had a momentary impulse to end his own life. Even though he was now absolutely safe, the lingering fear still clung to him, suffocating him with a sense of despair as if he were trapped in a foul swamp.

He found it laughable when he remembered how he and Qin Zhu had specifically warned Song Yizhi to stay away from Du Jun. “Suddenly, I think I should have been thinking the worst of you from the start, Song Yizhi.”

Smoke hung between them as Song Yizhi tried to say something, but Shen Jin didn’t give him a chance.

“If I had seen you with suspicion from the beginning, I would have thought you were trying to ruin my relationship with Gu Yu, trying to be a third party—that’s called being shameless.”

“Later on, with suspicion, I would think that you deliberately mixed with alphas to attract all of them while responding to none—being a slut while trying to maintain a facade.”

“And now, with suspicion, I’d say you didn’t accidentally drop the drug but intentionally left it for Du Jun—because you knew he most likely hated Qin Zhu and me the most. But did you ever think he might use it on another innocent omega?”

Shen Jin’s cold gaze bore into Song Yizhi. “Did you ever consider that?”

The person in front of him wiped away his tears and glared at Shen Jin, refusing to speak. Seeing this, Shen Jin didn’t hold back and immediately grabbed his hand, pressing the lit cigarette into the pale, tender skin on the back of his hand, harshly saying, “Answer me.”

Song Yizhi screamed in pain as the burn seared his skin, but Shen Jin, eyes red, kept a tight grip on him with one hand while the other clenched around his neck.

“You should be thanking the heavens,” Shen Jin’s voice trembled, his eyes flashing with cold light. “It’s a good thing that Qin Zhu wasn’t the one harmed today, or I might really have destroyed you.”

Whether Song Yizhi did it intentionally or not, the drug issue started because of him. Shen Jin couldn’t understand how an omega who appeared so pure and kind on the outside could be so ruthless.

For this reason, Shen Jin looked at Song Yizhi with a cold smile tinged with regret. “Song Yizhi, there’s something you should understand.”

Song Yizhi hesitated before asking, “…What is it?”

The overhead light in the room reflected in Shen Jin’s eyes, making him look both fierce and heart-wrenchingly disbelieving.

He said, “You should understand… even though Gu Yu is my boyfriend and my other friends can empathize with me, none of them can truly understand what it means for an omega to be raped by an alpha—only another omega like you can.”

“No matter how much you want to see other omegas lose an arm or a leg, or even their lives, they might never believe you could be so vicious and low.”

Song Yizhi froze, suddenly unable to say anything.

Before he could react, Shen Jin, with the last bit of his energy, raised his fist—Song Yizhi didn’t stand a chance in their confrontation, and any underhanded tricks he tried were easily seen through by the current Shen Jin.

Perhaps because he had never been humiliated like this before, Song Yizhi finally snapped out of it after struggling for a while and cursed, “You, you dare hit me—watch out, or the police will arrest you.”

“You actually know there’s such a thing as the police? I thought all your education went to waste.” Shen Jin kicked him towards a nearby chair and said, “I don’t know if the police will arrest me, but they’ll definitely arrest you.”

He was a seasoned individual and could immediately tell how naive Song Yizhi was.

No matter how Song Yizhi obtained that illegal drug, the police could easily find out if they wanted to.

This was also Du Jun’s naivety—having narrowly escaped a previous incident on West Street, he thought he could act recklessly without consequence, not realizing it was just his misplaced confidence, thinking he could easily deceive the police with his limited experience, when in fact, it was all just luck.

“The truth will be determined by the police,” Shen Jin said flatly, taking the cigarette pack. “Whether you had contact with Du Jun, whether you accidentally lost the drug or deliberately let Du Jun take it—they’ll make a judgment. But… I should give you a warning.”

Song Yizhi’s breathing grew heavier, and he immediately interrupted, “I don’t need it.”

“You don’t need it, but you’re going to listen.” Shen Jin kicked the armrest of the chair and said, “You might not know Du Jun well, but I do. So you don’t need to worry about the police coming after you—just remember, if you really did this, Du Jun will definitely rat you out and claim you did it on purpose. The police will not only come after you, but they’ll uncover the truth and notify B University of your criminal record. Then B University will naturally reconsider what value a student like you has in their medical program.”

In the now smoke-free room, Song Yizhi’s expression finally showed undisguised panic, while Shen Jin opened the door, his face pale, and leaned weakly against the worried Gu Yu, quickly saying, “I just need to borrow some strength; don’t, don’t touch me.”